My 2026 Word Of The Year

A single word can change the way that your day goes. 

A single word can change how you feel about yourself. 

A single word can remind you of a memory from years ago. 

A single word can bring a smile to your face or tears to your eyes.

Words are small, but they are mighty. We carry them, sometimes without realizing the weight they add. Some words lift us. Others linger longer than they should.

They slip quietly into our thoughts, settle into our emotions, and before we realize it, they’re shaping our choices. We don’t always notice when it happens, but language is constantly working on us, like water smoothing a stone over time.

The words we choose act like lenses. They color how we interpret situations, people, and even ourselves. Call something a problem, and it feels heavy. Call it a challenge, and suddenly it feels possible. Same situation. Different energy.

That’s the thing about words. They don’t just describe reality. They create it.

Think about a word that instantly stirs something in you. Maybe it’s home. Maybe it’s failure. Maybe it’s a name. Words carry emotional fingerprints, and once they touch us, they linger. That’s why choosing them intentionally matters more than we often realize.

WHY I CHOOSE A WORD OF THE YEAR

I have been picking a word of the year for years now. Looking back through the words I chose (somehow I didn’t choose one in 2025), they have all had meaning in that part of my life. These are the ones that I remember…

2017: Conquer

2020: Becoming

2021: Fierce

2022: More

2023: Allow

2024: Impact

It may be just a word, BUT these words help me to look at the world differently.

For me, choosing a word isn’t about self-improvement in the hustle sense. It’s about awareness. A word becomes a quiet guide, a compass I can return to when things feel noisy or overwhelming.

Resolutions and goals tend to shout. Words whisper. And whispers last longer.

A word doesn’t demand perfection. It invites curiosity. It doesn’t say, “Do this every day.” It asks, “How could this show up right now?” That flexibility is what makes it powerful.

LOOKING BACK AT THE WORDS THAT SHAPED ME

Each word marked a season. Not always an easy one, but an honest one.

2017 – Conquer: That year was about pushing through fear and learning that courage doesn’t mean you’re not scared. It means you move anyway.

2020 – Becoming: A year of transition, uncertainty, and redefining myself. Becoming permitted me to be unfinished and a work in progress.

2021 – Fierce: This was the year I stopped apologizing for taking up space. Fierce didn’t mean loud. It meant rooted.

2022 – More: More joy. More honesty. More alignment. More laughter. More moments. It was a reminder that wanting more didn’t make me ungrateful. It made me human.

2023 – Allow: This word softened me. It taught me that forcing isn’t the same as progress.

2024 – Impact: Impact asked me to think beyond myself. How do my words, actions, and choices ripple outward? How can I bring my best self forward to help make an impact on others?

What did all of these words have in common?

Each one met me where I was. None of them were about fixing myself. They were about understanding myself.

Somehow, I didn’t choose a word in 2025. That absence was noticeable. Without a word to return to, I felt unanchored. Reactive instead of reflective. Looking back, I realize I was holding onto too much: expectations, momentum, old versions of myself. I didn’t need a new direction. I needed release.

But even that taught me something. It reminded me how much words ground me. Sometimes you don’t realize what matters until it’s missing.

HOW WORDS INFLUENCE OUR DAILY LIVES

We speak to ourselves more than anyone else. And those words matter. A lot. If your inner voice is harsh, life feels heavier. If it’s compassionate, everything softens.

Repeat something often enough, and your brain accepts it as truth. Sometimes the most powerful shift isn’t in what we say next, but in what we stop repeating. Release can begin with retiring the words that no longer deserve a place in our inner dialogue. That’s why intentional language is a form of self-care. Change the words, and you slowly change the story you tell about who you are. It starts to show on the outside and changes everything on the inside.

MY 2026 WORD OF THE YEAR: RELEASE

I didn’t rush my 2026 word of the year. I let it sit. I paid attention to what I needed, not what sounded good.

The right word doesn’t feel forced. It feels familiar, like it’s been waiting.

As I step into 2026, the word that keeps rising to the surface is Release. Not in a dramatic, burn-it-all-down way, but in a quiet, intentional, soul-deep way. This season of my life isn’t asking me to add more, push harder, or prove anything. It’s asking me to loosen my grip.

Release feels like an exhale I’ve been holding for longer than I realized.

Release means letting go of what no longer fits. Expectations, stories, habits, and even versions of myself that once served me but now feel heavy. It’s about choosing peace over pressure and presence over perfection.

This word isn’t about giving up. It’s about creating space. It’s about allowing this to show up and fall away.

There are narratives we carry without questioning them. 

• I should be further along. 

• I have to do it this way.

• This is just how I am.

  
  

Release invites me to rewrite those stories. Or better yet, stop telling them altogether.

So much of my energy is wasted trying to manage outcomes, opinions, and timing. Release reminds me that control is often an illusion and surrender can be a form of strength.

Letting go isn’t empty. It’s an opening. When I release what’s weighing me down, I make room for clarity, creativity, and calm. I trust that what’s meant to stay will stay and what’s meant to leave will do so gently.

Release isn’t a single moment. It’s a practice. One I plan to return to again and again throughout 2026.

LIVING WITH A WORD AND NOT JUST WRITING IT

A word of the year isn’t something you choose once and forget. It’s something you live with. I keep my word close by writing it, saying it out loud, and asking myself, sometimes gently, sometimes honestly, how it applies in this moment.

In hard moments, when I feel pulled in too many directions or weighed down by expectations, my word becomes a pause button. Release reminds me that I don’t have to carry everything. That I’m allowed to let go of what no longer fits, what drains my energy, or what was never mine to begin with.

A word isn’t a rule. It’s a reminder. Not a demand for perfection, but an invitation to course-correct with compassion. When I drift, it brings me back. Not to who I was, but to who I’m becoming.

Choosing a word doesn’t require deep analysis or the right answer. It starts with a few honest questions: 

What do I need more of right now? 

What am I learning?

What feels heavy? 

Your word doesn’t have to sound impressive or make sense to anyone else. If it resonates, it’s right.

Words are tools, and when we choose them with care, they shape how we move through the world. Becoming intentional with language, especially the language we use with ourselves, can quietly change everything.

A single word won’t magically fix your life. But it can change how you hold it. In 2026, Release is my reminder that growth doesn’t always come from doing more. It often comes from letting go.

 Letting go of pressure. 

Letting go of old stories. 

Letting go of the need to have it all figured out.

When we choose our words intentionally, we choose how we show up. And sometimes, the most powerful thing you can do for yourself is to release what’s been weighing you down and trust what comes next.

Maybe your word isn’t about becoming something new. Maybe, like mine, it’s about releasing what’s been keeping you from who you already are.